In the end it was the nimble, canine legs of Simply Fabulous outpacing the sturdy, equine legs of Tiny Tim which helped settle one of the most heated debates within the racing fraternity.

Racehorse or greyhound, which is the fastest? For anyone looking for a sporting upset then Kempton Park racetrack was the place to be yesterday evening as the greyhound Simply Fabulous upset the odds and breezed past the winning post in 23.29 seconds, leaving the racehorse Tiny Tim behind by seven lengths.

It was not only bookmakers' odds that were stacked against Simply Fabulous, who started the race at 6-5 while his competitor was 13-8 on to win.

The greyhound stood at 76cm (30in), and weighed in at 30kg (66lb), with an inside leg measurement of 50cm. His equine competitor weighed in at 412kg (908lb), stood 1.5 metres, and had an inside leg measurement of a metre.

And while Tiny Tim had managed to be placed in the top three in eight of the last 10 races he had competed in, Simply Fabulous was reported to have not raced competitively since November 2002.

It was billed as a David versus Goliath contest - over two furlongs - designed to establish whether racing horses were quicker than racing dogs, a favourite topic of discussion among punters.

Simply Fabulous did not let his canine brethren down.

His owner, David Hood, who also works for the bookmakers William Hill, the organisers of yesterday's event, claimed that the success of Simply Fabulous may have been down to his favourite meal. "I fed him bangers and mash in the morning - he loves them. I'm a bit shocked because I wasn't expecting Simply Fabulous to win. But greyhounds are terrific athletes, they can accelerate from 0 to 40mph in one second. There's no other animal that can compete with them, and this shows that over a certain distance they can beat the best racehorses."

Given that horse racing has found itself in the doghouse recently over betting scandals there was a more serious point to yesterday's event, which was also designed to promote two of the most important meetings of the racing calendar, the Epsom Derby and the Greyhound Derby, both taking place this Saturday.

Tiny Tim will be taking part in this Saturday's Derby and his jockey, Fergus Sweeney, said that he hoped he fared better against horses than he did against the dog.

Mr Sweeney said: "I am a little bit disappointed to have lost. It was a good race and I think I would have probably caught the dog if there had been another furlong. I thought the dog would take a bit of catching but greyhounds are much quicker than horses over two furlongs."

As he went off to prepare for this Saturday's classic horse race, Mr Sweeney said that he looked forward to a re-match.

Simply Fabulous, meanwhile, was led away from the winner's enclosure and was awarded another dish of bangers and mash.

While the canine racing world may have registered a significant victory, once again the real winners from yesterday's event were the bookmakers. Punters wagered almost £10,000 on the unique race - almost all of it to backing Tiny Tim to beat his greyhound rival.

Contests between unlikely opponents

· Billie Jean King v Bobby Riggs

Billie Jean defeated US tennis player Bobby Riggs in three straight sets at the Houston Astrodome in September 1973. The Battle of the Sexes was watched by 90 million television viewers.

· Muhammad Ali v Antonio Inoki

The world heavyweight boxing champ squared-off against wrestling giant Antonio Inoki before a packed house in Tokyo in 1976. Disappointed spectators threw rubbish into the ring when the match ended in a draw.

· Ben Johnson v 2 horses and a car

The former sprinter, who received a lifetime suspension in 1993 after testing positive for drugs, raced against two horses and a stock car at a charity event in Canada in 1998. Johnson came third, beating the car after it stalled in mud.

· Michael Shumacher v a fighter jet

Last December, the king of Formula One took on a Eurofighter jet. His Ferrari won the first 600-metre sprint in just over nine seconds but lost the next two longer races.